Lab members
Haiqi is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and a member of the Cecil H. and Ida Green Center for Reproductive Biology Sciences. Haiqi received a Ph.D. in Molecular Endocrinology through a joint program between the University of Hong Kong and the Population Council at the Rockefeller University in 2017. In 2018, he began his postdoctoral training at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard as a Lalor fellow, and later on started an independent research program at the UT Southwestern Medical Center in late 2021.
In his free time, Haiqi enjoys Sci-Fi novels and soccer.
Rahil Alhumaidi
Research Technician
rahil.alhumaidi@utsouthwestern.edu
Rahil is a Research Technician in the Chen Lab. She earned her master’s degree in Biology from the University of North Texas in 2023. Her research interests lie in understanding how dynamic cell–cell interactions shape tissue development and immune regulation in reproductive biology.
Rahil is currently working on understanding cell–cell interactions within reproductive tissues using genetic models and genomics approaches.
Qianlan Xu
Postdoctoral Researcher
qianlan.xu@utsouthwestern.edu
Qianlan Xu is a postdoctoral researcher in the Chen lab. She earned her Ph.D. from the University of Science and Technology of China, focusing on transcription regulation in protozoan meiosis and genome reorganization during the mammalian cell cycle. She then completed postdoctoral training at UC San Diego and UC Irvine, studying gene regulation in mammalian tissue aging and age-associated diseases.
With her background in genomics and epigenetics, Qianlan aims to leverage cutting-edge spatial omics techniques to decode molecular mechanisms of gene regulation in cellular development and human diseases.
Huong Huynh
Research Technician
huong.huynh@utsouthwestern.edu
Huong is a research technician in the Chen lab. She attended Northwestern University from 2020-2024 to obtain her B.S./M.S. in Biomedical Engineering. During that time, she worked in the lab of Prof. John A. Roger to develop a device for simultaneous neuronal imaging and wireless drug delivery.
Huong is currently working on developing a spatial metabolomics platform.
Xin Zhang
Postdoctoral Researcher
xin.zhang2@utsouthwestern.edu
Xin Zhang is a postdoctoral fellow in the Chen lab. Xin received his Ph.D. in Reproductive Medicine from the State Key Laboratory of Reproductive Medicine in Nanjing Medical University. During his Ph.D., he focused on understanding the genetic causes of azoospermia. He studied the ultrastructure of sperm flagella and identified key genes and their roles in the motion of flagella. Xin has ample experience generating genetic animal models using CRISPR-based gene editing tools.
Xin is currently interested in dissecting gene functions at scale by combining CRISPR screen with spatial -omics technologies.
Qiqi Cao
Postdoctoral Researcher
Qiqi.Cao@utsouthwestern.edu
Qiqi Cao is a joint postdoctoral researcher of the Chen lab and the Grow lab at the Cecil H. and Ida Green Center for Reproductive Biology Sciences. Qiqi obtained her Ph.D. in Reproductive Medicine from the State Key Laboratory of Reproductive Medicine, Nanjing Medical University. Her work during her PhD focused on female infertility. She identified genetic variants in maternal genes and their pathogenic mechanisms in maternal-embryo transition.
Qiqi is currently working on building a spatial transcriptome atlas for ovarian follicles and the development of new spatial -omics technologies.
We are hiring!
Research Associate / Graduate Student / Postdoctoral Fellow
We are hiring!
Postdoctoral fellows may e-mail Haiqi at Haiqi.Chen@utsouthwestern.edu with a CV, statement of research interests, and 2-3 references. Please click here for details.
We are also looking for motivated undergraduates and graduate students!
We welcome everyone regardless of age, race, ethnicity, religion, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, socioeconomic and immigration status.
Lab Alumni
(1) Melanie Evans, REI Fellow (2022-2023), clinician at Dallas Fort Worth Fertility Associates;
(2) Shreya Rajachandran, Research Technician (2022-2024), medical student at UT Austin Medical School.
(3) Angie Huang, Rotation Student (2024), graduate student at UT Southwestern Medical Center.